My friend Gary Firuta opened a fascinating can of worms recently. Gary is respected as one of the nation’s foremost authorities on James Bond, and commenting that Dame Shirley Bassey recently released a new album (you go Shirley!), noted that the last 007 film, “Quantum of Solace,” could have benefited from her vocal talents. Dame Shirley recorded the theme songs to three previous Bond films.

Gary also forwarded a news report titled “Will James Bond live to die another day?” reporting that M-G-M, the studio that, along with the Bond films’ producer Eon Productions Ltd., owns half the rights to the Bond franchise, may be on the verge of bankruptcy, which would put production of the next Bond film into turmoil.

What followed Gary’s comments was a plethora of general agreement, often accompanied by links to YouTube videos showing how one of Dame Shirley’s new numbers perfectly works with the “Quantum of Solace” title sequence, and is much better than the horrid racket, Alicia Keys’ “Another Way to Die,” the producers at Eon Productions chose.

Weighing in on the discussion have been such luminaries from the world of 007 as Doug Redenius, one of the execs at the Ian Fleming Foundation, which collects and preserves some of the Bond film vehicles and vessels, and Raymond Benson, who has authored several Bond short stories and novels for the estate of the late Ian Fleming, Bond’s creator.

I finally added my own two-cents’ worth: “I heartily agree with Gary et. al. That Jason Bourne movie they called “Quantum of Solace” sucked so bad it’s a wonder we weren’t all propelled violently out of the cinema. What a pity to waste one of the greatest Bond titles on a movie that bore no resemblance to a Bond film,” I wrote.

“One can only hope that when MGM/UA/Eon/Whoever get their acts together, they will budget enough money for the next 007 film to be able to afford tripods for the cameras and color film stock. Maybe there will be enough left over to purchase a good plot, too. (Maybe they have a left-over plot on the shelf from the last production, seeing as none was used.)”

I got a nice reply from a polite fellow named Tom Zielinski, a knowledgeable Bond enthusiast who runs an interesting 007 blog:

“I too had issues with QOS.  My review at HMSS (http://www.hmss.com/films/QOS/TZreview.htm) notes some of your very points, and I gave it a mediocre review,” Tom wrote me. “But to imply that it is not a Bond film is ridiculous.

“No disrespect here, but I’m curious.  I’m guessing you’ve seen QOS but once and would prefer Roger Moore’s take on Bond?” Tom asked. “Your opinion is certainly as valid as anyone else’s.  Again, I’m simply curious.”

Since Tom asked for my opinion, I gave it to him. I should note, by the way, for one Bond enthusiast to suggest another Bond enthusiast prefers Roger Moore’s amusing portrayals of 007 over any of the other five actors’ performances (six if you count David Niven in “Casino Royale.” Seven if you include Barry Nelson, the first actor to ever portray James Bond) borders on a rather snooty insult. Here’s how I replied to Tom:

Hi Tom, yes I only saw QOS once. It was such an unpleasant experience that I haven’t been able to bring myself to even watch the DVD that I obligingly bought to complete the collection. The shaky, unsteady camera-work, the fast MTV edits, etc. actually made me queasy at some points!

Apart from calling one of the characters “James Bond” and another one “M,” I really didn’t see anything in that film that looked like a James Bond movie. It was absolutely no different than the last Jason Bourne movie: just a lot of bam! bam! bam!, cut! cut! cut!, loud explosion! loud explosion! The color was washed out and the camera must’ve been handled by someone with Parkinson’s who was off his meds the way it wobbled all the time, not that any one scene lasted long enough to actually allow any artistic camera use anyway. James Bond films have elegance, style and class. QOS had none of those attributes. It didn’t even have a decent theme song or a memorable score.

I still prefer George Lazenby as 007, and only wish he hadn’t been so head-strong that he didn’t let Cubby and Harry mold him to the role over several films. What a loss! Roger was amusing, but I still prefer him as Lord Brett Sinclair (in the TV series “The Persuaders,” in which he costarred with Tony Curtis) over 007. But even Roger’s worst Bond film, “Moonraker,” was eons (ha ha!) ahead of that sad tripe we were subjected to last fall. The day after we saw QOS, after I was done apologizing profusely to my friend for forcing him to sit through it (at least dinner at an excellent seafood restaurant that night assured the evening wasn’t a total waste), we actually watched “Moonraker.” Compared to the drivel we saw the night before, it was an exquisite Bond romp and Roger Moore was simply brilliant.

I know the series has to progress to remain relevant and attract new market share, and we can’t linger in the widescreen, Technicolor beauty and sophistication of the Sean Connery years — augmented, of course, by a lush John Barry score — but to completely abandon the elements that make a James Bond film a James Bond film is ludicrous, and in a way, insulting to movie audiences. Lose those elements and you’ve no longer got a James Bond film. With QOS, Eon did — and we haven’t.